Developer, residents clash over proposed zoning change

Wednesday

Sep 23, 2009 at 12:08 PM

A property owner in Northwest St. Johns County wants to change his land's zoning for millions of square feet of commercial space, and some residents are not happy about it.

Joe Helow and his family own two large parcels of land, 340 acres off Greenbriar Road and County Road 223, called the Greenbriar property, and 560 acres off Greenbriar and Roberts roads, called the Florida property because it's shaped like the state.

Helow said his family has asked St. Johns County for a zoning change to distribute the already-allowed 4 million square feet of mixed use development throughout the Greenbriar property and change the Florida parcel from horticulture to mixed use. Mixed use includes residential, industrial and commercial development.

Northwest residents and the county's planning department staff have raised concerns with the zoning changes. Topping the list is the fear that this change would set a precedent for future developers and help an owner win a lawsuit to bring commercial space in the project called Hopewell, which many residents vehemently opposed.

Resident Kim Kendall, one of the leaders of the Hopewell opposition, said, "Hopewell was only asking for 25,000 square feet. (Helow) wants millions of square feet of commercial space."

Helow says he and his family are doing "something that will really benefit the people of St. Johns County."

"When we come out of the recession there will be a need for this in this area," Helow said. "We feel we will have a lot of people approaching us in the future (for commercial space)."

Neighbors' concerns

Resident Colleen Wood said if Helow spreads out the mixed use development throughout the Greenbriar parcel it will allow for more residences, including doubling the number of apartments he could build, bringing the number up to more than 1,300.

But Helow said distributing the mixed use development will "reduce density and traffic" and move the traffic two miles east of Bartram Trail High School. Helow's property abuts the school to the south.

"(Residents) should really like what we're doing," he said.

Kendall doesn't. She says the traffic would be closer to Bartram Trail High School, an area where her 12-year-old son will eventually be driving.

She also said it would create competition for the several already-approved DRIs (Developments of Regional Impact) in the area that also have commercial zones in their plans.

"These developments have agreed to bring in five schools and new roads for us," Kendall said. "We don't need to be adding commercial space that might make their stores go under."

Teresa Bishop, county director of long-range planning, said this concerns her, too.

Helow said the DRIs approved in the area of his property are predominantly residential and his commercial space will fill a need.

"What we're doing should be complimentary to the developments," he said.

Bishop also said dispersing the mixed use on the Greenbriar property could create strip malls, a look the county is trying to stay away from.

Kendall is worried that if the county approves Helow's application it will help another owner win his lawsuit.

An owner of property off Roberts Road is suing after the county said to no building a church complex that included 25,000-square-feet of commercial space. The church is called Hopewell Baptist Church.

"If I'm Hopewell, I'd say, 'OK, the county let them do it,'" Kendall said. "I would certainly hope the commission would think about that."

Helow said his property "has nothing to do with Hopewell."

Future uses

Helow said St. Johns County is in the process of changing its future land use map, so he wanted to take the opportunity to change the zoning of his land. He said he will eventually sell the property, and not knowing who will develop it is especially worries Bishop.

"We would have to change the zoning of the property without knowing what's going there," she said. "We don't have any plans to look at."

Bishop said her staff has not yet decided if they will recommend the county's Planning and Zoning Agency approve the project. It goes before the board on Oct. 15.

Resident Wood said she knows Helow, and "he is a nice man."

"Our families have known each other for years," she said. "But if he sells the property we've now given up a lot of control in that area."

Helow said he can "reassure residents we are going to be around for a long time," and even if they sell the property he and his family will continue to live in the area.

"I want to be able to look residents in the eye and know we did everything we said we were going to do," he said.

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